Google Software Engineer Salary

Google is a leader when it comes to employing software engineers, attracting professionals worldwide across various levels and focuses. Known offering leading benefits and compensation in the tech industry, Google compensates its software engineers well—but a Google software engineer salary will vary based on role level, location, and other factors. So, how much can you expect to earn as a software engineer at Google? Our salary negotiation team is here to help you figure that out.

With extensive experience negotiating hundreds of tech job offers, we provide insights based on real-world Google salary negotiations and compensation research. In this guide, you'll find detailed information on Google software engineer levels, the key components of a Google software engineer salary, and a breakdown of average Google SDE base salaries and total compensation packages by level and location.

Want to Negotiate Your Offer? Get offer-specific guidance from a Google Salary Negotiation Coach. We help software engineers negotiate competitive job offers.

Or leverage our Salary Negotiation Courses and Templates.

Google has a tiered structure for its software engineering roles just like you’d see at most competing tech companies. Understanding the Google software engineer level is important before interviewing and accepting an offer, as they influence your software engineering responsibilities, total compensation, and career trajectory within Google. Google determines the Google SDE level based on a combination of factors, including years of experience, the scope of responsibilities, and the overall impact of the role.

In this section, we provide an overview of the Google software engineer levels to help you navigate their role levels.

As a software engineer at Google, you can follow either an Individual Contributor (IC) or Engineering Manager (EM) career path. Below are the Google SDE levels for the IC track:

• Google L3 Software Engineer (SDE II)

• Google L4 Software Engineer (SDE III)

• Google L5 Software Engineer (Senior SDE)

• Google L6 Software Engineer (Staff SDE)

• Google L7 Software Engineer (Senior Staff SDE)

• Google L8 Software Engineer (Principal SDE)

• Google L9 Software Engineer (Distinguished SDE)

We focus on the Google SDE levels for the IC track on this page, but for reference here are the Google Engineering Manager levels for the manager track: 

• Google L5 Software Engineering Manager (Engineering Lead)

• Google L6 Software Engineering Manager (Engineering Manager)

• Google L7 Software Engineering Manager (Senior Engineering Manager)

• Google L8 Software Engineering Manager (Engineering Director)

• Google L9 Software Engineering Manager (Senior Engineering Director)

In a Google software engineer salary package, you’ll find four core compensation components. For more in-depth details from us on Google’s compensation structure, you can check out our Google Salary Negotiation article. Below is a quick overview of what to expect before we cover the average compensation for Google software engineer salary.

Google Base Salary

This is the fixed amount you’ll receive in each paycheck at Google. There are set base salary ranges for each Google software engineering level and location.

Google Performance Bonus

The performance bonus is a percentage of your base salary, determined by both individual and company performance. Depending on your Google SDE level, the target bonus percentage typically ranges from 10% to 25% for most levels but will be larger in L8+ SDE roles.

Google Equity Package

Upon joining Google, you'll receive an initial grant of Google Restricted Stock Units (RSUs). These will vest over a four-year period in different annual increments, meaning you'll receive 38% of your RSUs in year one, 32% in year two, 20% in year three, and the final 10% in year four.

Google Sign-on Bonuses

Google typically offers software engineers a sign-on bonus in the first year. This one-time bonus serves as an incentive to join Google or to compensate for any benefits or perks you may lose when leaving your current company.

Google Stock Refreshers

These are annual Google RSU equity grants that you may receive based on your annual performance review at Google.

Google has a set base salary and total compensation range for each Google software engineer level. While they typically aim to pay new hires within the lower to mid-range of these pay bands, we’ve successfully negotiated Google software engineer salaries closer to the top end of each pay range.

Below, we’ve listed the average compensation for Google software engineers across the Google SDE levels. Note that these figures are averages based on our research and negotiation experience, and not the top end of the Google SDE pay bands. To identify and reach the top end of the pay range and secure a competitive software engineer salary at Google, we recommend working with a Google Salary Negotiation Coach.

Google SDE 2 Salary (L3)

Here is the average compensation we’ve seen for an L3 Google SDE 2 salary.

Google SDE 3 Salary (L4)

Here is the average compensation we’ve seen for an L4 Google SDE 3 salary.

Google Senior Software Engineer Salary (L5)

Here is the average compensation we’ve seen for an L5 Google senior software engineer salary.

Google Staff Software Engineer Salary (L6)

Here is the average compensation we’ve seen for an L6 Google staff software engineer salary.

Google Senior Staff Software Engineer Salary (L7)

Here is the average compensation we’ve seen for an L7 Google senior staff software engineer salary.

Google Principal Engineer Salary (L8)

Here is the average compensation we’ve seen for an E8 Google principal engineer salary.

Google Distinguished Engineer Salary (L9)

Here is the average compensation we’ve seen for an L9 Google distinguished engineer salary.

Google offers competitive pay for software engineers, but salaries at Google can vary significantly depending on the location. For example, a Google software engineer salary San Francisco won't be the same as a Google software engineer salary Seattle, and a Google software engineer salary UK will be different compensation than those in the US. As a large tech company, Google closely monitors cost-of-living differences when setting their base salary and total compensation ranges.

Below, we’ve listed the average compensation for software engineers in some of Google's key hiring locations for software engineers at the Google L6 salary level. These figures are based on our research and negotiation experience and represent averages, not the top end of the Google pay bands. To identify and reach the top end of the salary range and secure a competitive offer at Google in your specific location, we recommend working with a Google Salary Negotiation Coach.

Google Software Engineer Salary Los Angeles

Here is the average compensation we’ve seen for Google Software Engineer Salary Los Angeles.

Google Software Engineer Salary New York

Here is the average compensation we’ve seen for Google Software Engineer Salary New York.

Google Software Engineer Salary San Francisco

Here is the average compensation we’ve seen for Google Software Engineer Salary San Francisco.

Google Software Engineer Salary Seattle

Here is the average compensation we’ve seen for Google Software Engineer Salary Seattle.

Google software engineer salaries vary significantly across countries and non-US locations will have different pay rates. For example, a Google software engineer salary UK won't be the same as a Google SDE salary in Switzerland. It will also be lower than what Google pays software engineers in the US.

Below, we’ve listed the average compensation for software engineers in some of Google's key international hiring locations for software engineers at the Google staff software engineer salary level (L6). These figures are based on our research and negotiation experience and represent averages, not the top end of the Google pay bands. To identify and reach the top end of the salary range and secure a competitive offer at Google in Europe, we recommend working with a Google Salary Negotiation Coach.

Google Software Engineer Salary London, UK

Here is the average compensation we’ve seen for Google Software Engineer Salary London, UK.

Google Software Engineer Salary Switzerland

Here is the average compensation we’ve seen for Google Software Engineer Salary Switzerland.

Increasing the pay in your job offer at Google requires a deep understanding of their compensation philosophy and the right salary negotiation strategy. Our expert Google Salary Negotiation Coaching will help you navigate the negotiation process and secure the top end of Google’s pay band.